Toe yoke



31,1957 D. BRAXTON v 2,818,062

TOE YOKE Filed Sept. 13, 1954 DANIEL BRAXTON INVENTOR.

United States Patent TOE YOKE Daniel Braxton, River Rouge, Mich.

Application September 13, 1954, Serial No. 455,555

1 Claim. (Cl. 128-81) The invention pertains to means of preventing a toe, especially the second toe, of a human foot from being pushed upwardly out of the horizontal alinement with all the other toes. Such a situation develops, at times, by reason of the great toe being turned in the direction of the second toe by the pressure of the respective portion of the shoe worn on said foot. This leads, eventually, to a permanent dislocation of the second toe which, on being crowded upwardly, will partly overlap the great toe from above and will develop into what is known as a hammer toe. The disfigurement becomes, as a rule, a source of discomfort and pain.

It is the object of this invention to provide a simple device which will prevent the above-described eventuality and which will keep the second toe in place. A further object of the invention is to provide a device which will secure the above purpose but which will be capable of immediate application, which will stay in place, and which will occupy a minimum of space.

I shall now describe the invention with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the yoke;

Fig. 2 is a top elevational view thereof;

Fig. 3 is a top elevational view of a foot with the yoke applied to the second toe;

Fig. 4 is a side elevational view of a modified species of said yoke. Similar numerals refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

The yoke comprises a thin strip of metal, plastic, or any other suitable material, preferably of a resilient and springlike type. The strip is formed into a yoke by having its mid-portion bent into an approximately circular loop which is open at the bottom, as shown at 11. The end portions 12 of the strip are disposed in a horizontal plane, each end portion being turned outwardly from the loop, as best shown in Fig. 1. Because of the resilient nature of the strip, the loop may be spread at the bottom portion to facilitate the insertion of the toe into said loop.

For the sake of comfort, each end portion 12 carries, at top of it, a pad 13 which is best made of sponge rubber and is cemented to the upper surface of the respective end portion or flange 12 by a suitable bonding means.

2,818,062 Patented Dec. 31, 1957 These may include an adhesive substance or mechanical means, such as tabs integrally formed with the strip and bent into a gripping engagement with the edges of the pad. The above mechanical connection is only a suggestive one and forms no part of the invention by itself. An extension 14 of the rubber pad is cemented to the lower portion of the loop 10 on its outer surface, as shown in Fig. 1.

The species of the yoke shown in Fig. 4 includes a strip generally identified by numeral 20, the strip being formed into a loop 21 and including two end flanges 22 each of which is provided with a rubber pad 23 secured to its upper surface. In addition thereto, the yoke is also provided with a padding 24 within the arcuate top portion of the loop 21.

For use, the yoke is applied to the second toe in such a manner that the toe will fit into the interior portion of the loop 10 or 21, as the case may be, while the adjoining toes will rest on the rubber pads which will fit under said toes. This is shown in Fig. 3 where the great toe is marked 15, the second toe is marked 16, and the third toe is marked 17.

In case the modified species of the yoke is applied to the second toe in the manner described above, the rubber padding 24 will bear against the upper surface of said second toe, while the adjoining toes 15 and 17, respectively, will rest on pads 23.

The rubber extensions 14 shown in Fig. 1 will serve to cushion the adjoining toes on the sides facing said second toe 16.

While the description given herein is limited to the second toe and the adjoining toes, it will be understood that the yoke may be applied to any toe and that but a slight change in its structure would make it applicable to either of the outside toes. This could be accomplished simply by omitting one of the end flanges, such as flange 12 in Fig. 1.

After having described my improvement, what I wish to claim is as follows:

A toe yoke comprising a thin, spring-like strip formed, midway its length, into a loop rising upwardly from a horizontal plane, the loop being open at the bottom and extending, at each end, into an outwardly-disposed horizontal flange, a rubber pad on each flange, and a rubber padding upon the inner surface of the loop within the upper portion thereof.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,167,019 Reed Jan. 4, 1916 1,874,737 Boisselier Aug. 30, 1932 2,354,770 Patterson Aug. 1, 1944 2,471,997 Baltor May 31, 1949 FOREIGN PATENTS 899,262 France Aug. 7, 1944 

